Information processing apparatus, information processing system, and program

ABSTRACT

There is provided an information processing apparatus including a transmission processing section which performs short-range one-to-one communication with a communication partner device, a reception processing section, a received data processing section which acquires information obtained by communication with the communication partner device, a display section which displays the information, and a display processing section which executes processing of displaying the information based on a content of the information.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, aninformation processing system, and a program.

2. Description of the Related Art

In related art, in each of the following patent documents, there isdescribed a system which realizes desired operation in the case ofwirelessly communicating in a non-contact manner with a mobile devicesuch as a mobile phone. The patent documents are JP 2009-37401A, JP2007-316925A, JP 2009-25997A, JP 2009-49871A, WO 2003/21875specification, JP 2009-230469A, JP 2005-100050A, JP 2008-97151A, JP2008-148148A, and JP 2007-299134A. Further, in JP 2007-299134A, there isdescribed a configuration of an electronic pen using wirelesscommunication.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

However, there is assumed only a case of simply displaying informationon a screen in the technology described in each of JP 2009-37401A, JP2007-316925A, JP 2009-25997A, JP 2009-49871A, WO 2003/21875specification, JP 2009-230469A, JP 2005-100050A, JP 2008-97151A, JP2008-148148A, and JP 2007-299134A. Accordingly, it was difficult for auser to intuitively understand contents of the information.

In light of the foregoing, it is desirable to provide an informationprocessing apparatus, an information processing system, and a program,which are novel and improved, and which enable the user to acquireintuitively many pieces of information by visually displayinginformation related to a communication partner device.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is providedan information processing apparatus which includes a communicationsection which performs short-range one-to-one communication with acommunication partner device, an information acquisition section whichacquires information obtained by communication with the communicationpartner device, a display section which displays the information, and adisplay processing section which executes processing of displaying theinformation based on a content of the information.

Further, the information may include at least one of information relatedto a type of data held by the communication partner device,identification information for identifying the communication partnerdevice, and information related to a communication status whencommunicating with the communication partner device.

Further, the communication partner device may be placed, in a state of aconnection of communication being established, in a territory within thedisplay section or at a lateral side of the display section.

Further, the display processing section may perform processing ofdisplaying the information on a circumference with the communicationpartner device as a center.

Further, the display processing section may perform display processingin a manner that a ripple propagates on the display section depending onthe content of the information.

Further, the display processing section may perform display processingin a manner that speed, frequency, and amplitude of the ripplepropagation differ depending on the content of the information.

Further, the display processing section may perform display processingin a manner that data is flown off in a vicinity of the communicationpartner device with the communication partner device as a center.

Further, the display processing section may perform processing ofdetermining and displaying a display position within the display sectiondepending on the content of the information.

Further, the display processing section may perform display processingin a manner that a display state in a case of the information beingavailable differs from a display state in a case of the informationbeing unavailable.

Further, the display processing section may perform display processingin a manner that information already displayed on the display section iskept away from the information to be newly displayed.

Further, the display processing section may perform display processingthat works in conjunction with a display of a display section includedin the communication partner device.

Further, according to another embodiment of the present invention, thereis provided an information processing system which includes a firstdevice which communicates with a second device by short-range one-to-onecommunication, and the second device which includes a communicationsection which performs short-range one-to-one communication with thefirst device, an information acquisition section which acquiresinformation obtained by communication with the first device, a displaysection which displays the information, and a display processing sectionwhich executes processing of displaying the information based on acontent of the information.

Further, according to another embodiment of the present invention, thereis provided a program for causing a computer to function as a unitconfigured to perform short-range one-to-one communication with acommunication partner device, a unit configured to acquire informationobtained by communication with the communication partner device, a unitconfigured to display the information, and a unit configured to executeprocessing of displaying the information based on a content of theinformation.

According to the embodiments of the present invention described above,it becomes possible for the user to acquire intuitively many pieces ofinformation by visually displaying information related to thecommunication partner device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a configuration example of aninformation processing system according to a first embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an arrangement of electrode plates(antennas) provided to an information processing apparatus;

FIG. 3A is a schematic view showing an example of another arrangement ofthe electrode plates;

FIG. 3B is a schematic view showing an example of another arrangement ofthe electrode plates;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating a configuration of acommunication device;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of thesurrounding of a control section of a mobile device or the informationprocessing apparatus;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing a state where a UI like a wave(ripple) is displayed around the mobile device on a display section;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the informationprocessing apparatus;

FIG. 8A is a schematic view showing an example of displaying, when themobile device is put down, pieces of content in a manner to be scatteredaround as if they pop out;

FIG. 8B is a schematic view showing a state where there is displayed onthe display section a UI falling on sand and getting buried in the sandaround the mobile device;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing an example of bringing the mobiledevice closer to a side surface of an information processing apparatus300;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing a state where, in the case where themobile device is placed on a display section of the informationprocessing apparatus, content or a menu is displayed;

FIG. 11 shows an example of displaying, in the case where a connectionwith a mobile device is established, content held by the mobile deviceas an item of a cross media bar (XMB);

FIG. 12 is a schematic view showing an example of displaying informationof content by separating the information into left and right sides ofthe display section;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view showing a state where, among functionalicons, a functional icon which is not available grays out and afunctional icon which is available is displayed brightly depending on afunction of the mobile device;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view showing a state where an available icon ismoved in the vicinity of the mobile device;

FIG. 15 is a schematic view showing an example in which pieces ofcontent of the mobile device move to four corners on the displaysection;

FIG. 16 is a schematic view showing a state of looking for content byfeeling with hands pieces of content overflowed from the mobile deviceonto the display section;

FIG. 17 is a schematic view showing a state where a UI represented by anicon which is a picture of a compact disc (CD) or an audio tape and a UIwhich is a picture of a player;

FIG. 18 is a schematic view showing an example in which a window W moves(reduces) in a manner to keep away from the mobile device;

FIG. 19 is a schematic view showing an example in which an icon moves ina manner to keep away from the mobile device;

FIG. 20 is a schematic view showing a state where a UI in a spiral shapeis displayed depending on a position of the mobile device;

FIG. 21 is a schematic view showing a state where a UI in a spiral shapeis displayed depending on a position of the mobile device;

FIG. 22 is a schematic view showing a state where a display on a displaysection of the mobile device works in conjunction with a display on adisplay section of the information processing apparatus;

FIG. 23 is a schematic view showing a state where the display on adisplay section of the mobile device works in conjunction with thedisplay on a display section of the information processing apparatus;

FIG. 24 is a schematic view showing a state where, when content which isbeing reproduced in the mobile device is flicked on the display section,data is transferred to the information processing apparatus;

FIG. 25 is a schematic view showing an example of moving content byinterposing the information processing apparatus between mobile devices;

FIG. 26 is a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization triggered by a gesture;

FIG. 27 is a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization of information of a database of the informationprocessing apparatus with a mobile device (A) and a mobile device (B);

FIG. 28 is a schematic view showing a state where information of arecommended database is duplicated into latest information usinginformation of a server;

FIG. 29 is a schematic view showing a state of performing copying whileperforming transcoding;

FIG. 30 is a schematic view showing a state of exchanging addressesbetween two mobile devices (A) and (B);

FIG. 31 is a schematic view showing a state of selecting multipleaddresses by enclosing the addresses using a touch panel and exchangingthe enclosed addresses;

FIG. 32 is a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization depending on a distance when the mobile devices areplaced on the display section;

FIG. 33 is a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization depending on a distance when the mobile devices areplaced on the display section;

FIG. 34 is a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization depending on a distance when the mobile devices areplaced on the display section;

FIG. 35 is a schematic view showing a state of playing hockey with adisplay section being interposed, as application synchronization;

FIG. 36 is a schematic view showing a state where content “A” isdisplayed in a manner as if the content “A” penetrates the mobiledevice;

FIG. 37 is a schematic view showing a state where data is moved from themobile device to the information processing apparatus;

FIG. 38 is a schematic view showing an example of displaying, when themobile device is held over a folder icon, a content of the folder on thedisplay section of the mobile device;

FIG. 39 is a schematic view showing a state of affixing an electronicseal using the mobile device to a document displayed on the displaysection;

FIG. 40 is a schematic view showing an example in which a map of Japanis displayed on the display section of the information processingapparatus, and, by holding the mobile device over the display section ofthe information processing apparatus, an enlarged display of a map ofthe Kanto area is displayed on the display section of the mobile device;

FIG. 41 is a schematic view showing a state where, when the mobiledevice is placed on the display section, a UI for guidance is displayedon the display section;

FIG. 42 is a schematic view showing a configuration of an electronicpen;

FIG. 43 is a schematic view showing a state of using the electronic pen;and

FIG. 44 is a schematic view showing a state of using the electronic pen.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed in detail with reference to the appended drawings. Note that,in this specification and the appended drawings, structural elementsthat have substantially the same function and structure are denoted withthe same reference numerals, and repeated explanation of thesestructural elements is omitted.

Note that the description will be given in the following order.

1. First embodiment (display processing when connecting mobile device toinformation processing apparatus)

2. Second embodiment (content movement between mobile device andinformation processing apparatus)

3. Third embodiment (synchronization of information between mobiledevice and information processing apparatus)

4. Fourth embodiment (guidance to position with good communicationstatus)

5. Fifth embodiment (configuration example of electronic pen)

1. First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a configuration example of aninformation processing system according to a first embodiment of thepresent invention. As shown in FIG. 1, an information processing system100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is configuredfrom a mobile device 200 and an information processing apparatus 300including a display section 302 (display) which is relatively large insize.

The mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus 300 areconfigured such that large-capacity data can be transferred therebetweenby short-range wireless communication. As a mode of the short-rangewireless communication, there may be used TransferJet (registeredtrademark), for example.

The mobile device 200 is an electronic device having functions as amobile phone, a smartphone, a digital camera, and the like. There isprovided a display section 202 to the mobile device 200. The informationprocessing apparatus 300 is a device such as a personal computer (PC)and a television receiver, and includes the relatively large sizeddisplay section 302 configured from a liquid crystal display (LCD)panel, for example. There is provided a touch panel (touch sensor) onthe whole surface of the display section 302.

In the system, when the mobile device 200 is brought closer to theinformation processing apparatus 300, the connection between the mobiledevice 200 and the information processing apparatus 300 is establishedby the short-range wireless communication. Then, information held by themobile device 200 is transmitted to the information processing apparatus300, and on the display section 302 of the information processingapparatus 300, there is displayed a result of performing processingcorresponding to the transmitted information.

The mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus 300include an electrode plate (antenna) 204 and an electrode plate(antenna) 304, respectively, which are called electric field couplerscapable of mutually establishing electric field coupling. When theelectric field coupler of the mobile device 200 and the electric fieldcoupler of the information processing apparatus 300 come close to eachother, for example, when the distance between the electric fieldcouplers is 3 cm or less, one-to-one electric field communicationbetween the mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus300 is realized by one electric field coupler sensing a change of aninduction electric field generated by the other electric field coupler.

More specifically, among a pair of devices performing the electric fieldcommunication, one device functions as an initiator and the other devicefunctions as a responder. The initiator makes a connection establishmentrequest, and the responder waits for the connection establishmentrequest from the initiator.

For example, in the case where the mobile device 200 shown in FIG. 1functions as the initiator and the information processing apparatus 300shown in FIG. 1 as the responder, when the mobile device 200 and theinformation processing apparatus 300 are brought close to each other,the information processing apparatus 300 receives the connectionestablishment request (connection request frame) transmitted from themobile device 200. Then, when the connection establishment request isreceived by the information processing apparatus 300, the informationprocessing apparatus 300 transmits a connection response permission(connection response frame) to the mobile device 200. Then, when themobile device 200 receives the connection response permission, theconnection of communication between the information processing apparatus300 and the mobile device 200 is established. After the connection isestablished, or at the same time as the connection establishment, theinformation processing apparatus 300 and the mobile device 200 performauthentication processing, and when the authentication processing isnormally completed, the information processing apparatus 300 and themobile device 200 each become a data communicable state. As theauthentication processing, for example, there can be exemplifiedconfirmation of whether or not a software version, a data transfer mode,a protocol, and the like of the information processing apparatus 300corresponds with those of the mobile device 200.

After that, one-to-one data communication between the informationprocessing apparatus 300 and the mobile device 200 is performed. Morespecifically, the mobile device 200 transmits any data to theinformation processing apparatus 300 using the electric field coupler.Alternatively, any data is transmitted from the information processingapparatus 300 to the mobile device 200 using the electric field coupler.As the data, there may be exemplified music data such as music, alecture, and a radio program, video data such as a film, a TV program, avideo program, a photograph, a document, a picture, and a chart, a game,and software.

Here, while the radio wave emitted from an antenna of a radio frequencycommunication type attenuates in inverse proportion to the square of adistance, the intensity of the induction electric field generated fromthe electric field coupler is inversely proportional to the fourth powerof a distance, and hence, it is advantageous in that the distancebetween a pair of devices which are communicable with each other usingthe electric field communication can be limited. That is, according tothe electric field communication, there are obtained effects thatdegradation of a signal caused by an obstacle nearby is low, technologyfor preventing hacking and ensuring confidentiality can be simplified,and the like.

Further, the radio wave emitted from an antenna has a transverse wavecomponent which oscillates in the travelling direction and theorthogonal direction of the radio wave, and there is a polarized wave.On the other hand, the electric field coupler has a longitudinal wavecomponent which oscillates in the travelling direction, and generates aninduction electric field with no polarized wave, and hence, it is alsohighly convenient in that the signal can be received at the receivingside when the surfaces of the pair of electric field couplers face eachother.

Note that this specification places emphasis on an example in which apair of communication devices performs short-range wirelesscommunication (non-contact communication, TransferJet) utilizing anelectric field coupler, but the embodiments of the present invention arenot limited to such an example. For example, the pair of communicationdevices is also capable of performing the short-range wirelesscommunication via a communication section rendered communicable usingmagnetic field coupling. According to the communication type using theelectric field coupling or the magnetic field coupling, it is moreadvantageous than the radio frequency communication type in that aninterference issue hardly arises because a signal is not transmittedwhen a communication partner does not come nearby.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an arrangement of electrode plates(antennas) 304 provided to the information processing apparatus 300. Inthe example shown in FIG. 2, multiple electrode plates 304 are providedon the back surface of the information processing apparatus 300. In thismanner, by providing multiple electrode plates 304 on the whole regionwithin the surface of the information processing apparatus 300 andsetting a received signal strength to an appropriate value, acommunication connection between the mobile device 200 and theinformation processing apparatus 300 can be established when the mobiledevice 200 is brought closer to the display section 302, which is thefront side of the information processing apparatus 300.

Further, FIGS. 3A and 3B are each a schematic view showing anotherexample of arrangement of the electrode plates 304. In the example shownin FIG. 3A, multiple electrode plates 304 are arranged along the outlineof the information processing apparatus 300. With such a configuration,when the mobile device 200 is brought closer to the side surface of theinformation processing apparatus 300, information held by the mobiledevice 200 can be transmitted to the information processing apparatus300. Further, FIG. 3B is a schematic view showing another example ofarrangement of the electrode plates 304. In the example shown in FIG.3B, multiple electrode plates 304 are arranged, as antennas facinginside, along the outer outline of the display section 302. With such aconfiguration, even when the display section 302 is formed of a materialthat the radio wave is hard to pass through, information held by themobile device 200 can be transmitted to the information processingapparatus 300 when the mobile device 200 is brought closer on thedisplay section 302. As shown in FIG. 3B, in the case of arranging theelectrode plates 304 at the edges of the display section 302, there canbe provided a configuration in which a frame including a nonmetallicpart for wireless communication is additionally provided such that thedisplay section 302 is covered in a manner to be surrounded by theframe, and such that the electrode plates 304 are provided inside theframe, and hence, the communication can be performed without crossing ascreen of the display section 302. Further, by heaping up the frame in amanner that the frame is convex with respect to the display surface ofthe display section 302, and by embedding the electrode plates 304towards the inner side of the heaped part, it becomes possible tocommunicate with the mobile device placed on the display section 302. Inthis way, also with the configuration of FIG. 3B, it becomes possible tocommunicate with the mobile device placed on the display section 302.With the above configuration of the electrode plates 304, even when thedisplay section 302 is formed of a material that the radio wave is hardto pass through, it is possible to communicate in the state where acomponent such as a liquid crystal is interposed, in the case where theelectrode plates 304 are arranged on the back surface of the displaysection 302, by increasing the received signal strength.

Note that, since the mobile device 200 is relatively small in size, oneelectrode plate 204 is enough for the back side surface of the mobiledevice 200, but there may be provided multiple electrode plates 204.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating a configuration of acommunication section in the mobile device 200 and the informationprocessing apparatus 300. The configuration shown in FIG. 4 is the samefor both the mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus300.

As shown in FIG. 4, the mobile device 200 and the information processingapparatus 300 each have a transmission/reception coupler (communicationsection) 102, a selector 104, a transmission processing section 106, areception processing section 108, and a control section 110. Thetransmission/reception coupler 102 is configured from an electric fieldcoupler, and corresponds to the electrode plate 204, 304. The mobiledevice 200 and the information processing apparatus 300 communicateswith each other by establishing an electric field coupling between thetransmission/reception coupler 102 of the mobile device 200 and thetransmission/reception coupler 102 of the information processingapparatus 300. The transmission/reception coupler 102 of the mobiledevice 200 and the transmission/reception coupler 102 of the informationprocessing apparatus 300 are placed spaced apart from and facing eachother in a short distance about 3 cm, for example, and capable ofestablishing an electrostatic coupling. The transmission/receptioncoupler 102 is connected selectively to one of the transmissionprocessing section 106 and the reception processing section 108 via theselector 104.

The transmission processing section 106 generates a transmission signalfor transmitting data from the transmission/reception coupler 102. Thetransmission processing section 106 includes components such as anencoder for encoding transmission data, a diffuser for diffusing thetransmission data, a mapper for expanding the transmission data frombinary series to a complex signal, and an RF circuit for performingupconversion to center frequency. Further, the reception processingsection 108 decodes a reception signal received by thetransmission/reception coupler 102. The reception processing section 108includes components such as an RF circuit to which the reception signalis input, an A/D conversion section for converting the reception signalinto a digital signal, a demapper for demapping the reception signal,and a decoder. When a transmission request is arisen from an upper levelapplication, the transmission processing section 106 generates ahigh-frequency transmission signal such as a UWB signal based on thetransmission data, and the signal is propagated from thetransmission/reception coupler 102 to a communication partner device. Atransmission/reception coupler 102 of the communication partner devicedemodulates and decodes the received high-frequency signal, and passesthe reproduced data to the upper level application. The similarprocessing is performed also in the case where data is transmitted inthe reverse direction between the mobile device 200 and the informationprocessing apparatus 300. Therefore, two-way communication is realizedbetween the mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus300.

For example, according to a communication type using high frequency andbroadband, such as UWB communication, ultra high-speed data transmissionat about several hundred Mbps can be realized within a short distance.Further, in the case where the UWB communication is performed not byradio wave communication but by electrostatic coupling, the receivedsignal strength is inversely proportional to the fourth power of adistance, and hence, it is possible to render the received signalstrength (intensity of radio wave) a weak radio wave, which does notnecessitate a license of a radio station to be handled, by suppressingthe received signal strength at a distance of three meters from radioequipment to a predetermined level or lower, and there can be configureda communication system at a low price. Further, in the case ofperforming data communication at ultra-short distance by anelectrostatic coupling type, the quality of the signal is notdeteriorated due to a reflection object that is present in the vicinitythereof, hacking on the transmission path can be reliably prevented, andconfidentiality can be ensured. Further, by suppressing the receivedsignal strength to a predetermined lever or lower, and, for example, byenabling the communication only within a distance of 3 cm or less, itbecomes possible to obtain a configuration such that two devices cannotcommunicate at the same time with one device, and hence to realizeone-to-one communication within a short distance.

The control section 110 controls entire operation of the mobile device200 or the information processing apparatus 300. For example, thecontrol section 110 controls generation of a transmission signal by thetransmission processing section 106, and controls decoding of areception signal by the reception processing section 108. Further, whenthe control section 110 transmits a connection request frame, a datafile, and the like to a device of a communication partner, the controlsection 110 outputs a switching signal to the selector 104, and causesthe connection between the transmission/reception coupler 102 and thetransmission processing section 106 to be established. Further, when thecontrol section 110 receives the connection request frame, the datafile, and the like from the device of a communication partner, thecontrol section 110 outputs a switching signal to the selector 104, andcauses the connection between the transmission/reception coupler 102 andthe reception processing section 108 to be established.

The establishment of the connection is realized as follows: one device(initiator) transmits a connection request frame to another device(responder); and the initiator receives a connection response frametransmitted from the responder. The connection request frame istransmitted from the device, into which a user action such as data filetransferring or data file selection is input, to the communicationpartner.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of thesurrounding of the control section 110 of the mobile device 200 or theinformation processing apparatus 300. The configuration shown in FIG. 5is the same for both the mobile device 200 and the informationprocessing apparatus 300. As shown in FIG. 5, the control section 110 isconfigured to have a transmission data processing section 112, areceived signal strength (electric field intensity) detection section114, a received data processing section 116, a display processingsection 118, a position detection section 120, a processing executionsection 122, an operation detection section 124, and an audio/vibrationoutput section 126.

Further, the mobile device 200 or the information processing apparatus300 is configured to have a data accumulation section 130, a geomagneticsensor 140, an acceleration sensor 150, a display section 202, 302, anda touch panel (touch sensor) 170. Note that the information processingapparatus 300 may not include the geomagnetic sensor 140 and theacceleration sensor 150.

The functional blocks shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 can be each configured tohave hardware (sensor, circuit, and memory), or a processing unit (CPU)and software (program) for causing the processing unit to function. Inthe case where those functional blocks are each configured from theprocessing unit and the software, the program can be stored in arecording medium such as a memory included in the mobile device 200 orthe information processing apparatus 300.

With the configuration described above, in the case where the mobiledevice 200 and the information processing apparatus 300 placed inproximity to each other transmit/receive data to/from each other, themobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus 300 performvarious displays on the display section 202 and the display section 302,respectively, as user interfaces (UI's). Hereinafter, the contents ofthose displays will be described in detail. Note that, although thedisplay section 302 of the information processing apparatus 300 in FIG.1 is provided in a manner to extend in a vertical direction, the displaysection 302 may also be provided in a state of facing upward. That is,in the case where the information processing apparatus 300 is configuredfrom a thin-type display panel, the display section 302 may be placed ona table in a state of facing upward. In this case, a wirelesscommunication connection can be established by placing the mobile device200 on the display section 302.

In each embodiment that will be described below, in the case where themobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus 300wirelessly communicate with each other, there can be realizeduser-friendly devices such that a user can perform operation whileintuitively recognizing the processing by performing a predetermineddisplay on the display section 202, 302 as the user interface (UI). Notethat, the configuration described above is the same for each embodiment.

In the first embodiment, there will be described a reaction in the casewhere the mobile device 200 is placed on the display section 302 of theinformation processing apparatus 300 or in the case where the mobiledevice 200 is placed on the side surface of the information processingapparatus 300. Here, there is mainly described the case of placing thedisplay section 302 facing upward. Since the display section 302 of theinformation processing apparatus 300 is sufficiently larger than themobile device 200, transmission and reception of data can be performedbetween the mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus300 by placing, by the user, the mobile device 200 on the displaysection 302.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, when the communication connectionbetween the mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus300 is established, a UI like a wave (ripple) is displayed around themobile device 200 on the display section 302. The wave displayed on thedisplay section 302 in a manner as to be gradually propagated outwardwith the position of the mobile device 200 as the center. The state ofthe wave is changed depending on holding data amount, radio sensitivity,data transfer phase, and the like of the mobile device 200. Those piecesof information are acquired by the received data processing section 116of the information processing apparatus 300. The display processingsection 118 of the information processing apparatus 300 executesprocessing of performing display as will be described in each embodimentbelow based on the information detected by the received data processingsection 116. Accordingly, the user can intuitively recognize varioustypes of data such as the holding data amount only by looking at thestate of the wave.

Next, there will be described technology necessary for realizing the UIdescribed above and a method of realizing the UI. In the case of theconfiguration shown in FIG. 6, the position of the mobile device 200 onthe display section 302 can be specified based on a received signalstrength of each of multiple electrode plates 304 included in theinformation processing apparatus 300, and, for example, in the casewhere a received signal strength at a specific electrode plate 304 ishigher than a received signal strength at another electrode plate 304,then it is determined that the mobile device 200 is positioned in thevicinity of the specific electrode plate 304. Further, in the case wherea touch panel 170 is provided on the display section 302, the positionof the mobile device 200 on the display section 302 can also bespecified based on the output of the touch panel 170. In this case, itis preferable to use a pressure-sensitive type touch panel as the touchpanel.

Further, the detection that the mobile device 200 is held over theinformation processing apparatus 300 is performed by establishment of awireless connection owing to an approach of the mobile device 200 to theinformation processing apparatus 300. First, when a connection requestframe is transmitted from the transmission data processing section 112of one device (initiator) to another device (responder), the connectionrequest frame is received by the received data processing section 116 ofthe responder. Then, the transmission data processing section 112 of theresponder transmits a connection response frame, and the received dataprocessing section 116 of the initiator receives the connection responseframe. Thus, the wireless connection between the mobile device 200 andthe information processing apparatus 300 is established.

The identification of the mobile device 200 and the informationprocessing apparatus 300 is performed by exchanging identificationinformation (ID) therebetween, after the connection is established. Inthe data accumulation section 130 of the mobile device 200 or theinformation processing apparatus 300, there is stored identificationinformation. The identification information is read out from the dataaccumulation section 130, and is transmitted to a connection destinationby the transmission data processing section 112. The identificationinformation may be, in addition to device information for identifyingthe kind of device of the mobile device 200 or the informationprocessing apparatus 300, information including personal information ofa user with the device information.

The received signal strength can be acquired by an RSSI (Received SignalStrength Indicator). In the case of TransferJet, it is standard toacquire the RSSI at the time of communication. The received signalstrength is detected by the received signal strength (electric fieldintensity) detection section 114 shown in FIG. 5.

Pieces of information such as a stored data amount and a type of dataare acquired by a search or a reference to an index after theestablishment of the wireless connection. For example, the informationprocessing apparatus 300 acquires those pieces of information bysearching for information such as content and an application held by themobile device 200 after the establishment of the wireless connection.Further, the mobile device 200 can cause the information processingapparatus 300 to acquire those pieces of information by transmitting theindex of information such as content and an application to theinformation processing apparatus 300 after the establishment of thewireless connection. Further, it is also possible that the mobile device200 performs the search and the information processing apparatus 300transmits the index. In the same manner, data capacity is acquired by asearch or a reference to an index after the establishment of thewireless connection. Pieces of information such as content and anapplication held by the mobile device 200 are transmitted from thetransmission data processing section 112 and received by the receiveddata processing section 116.

The behavior of the UI to be realized is as follows. The positiondetection section 120 detects the position of the mobile device 200 onthe display section 302 or in the periphery of the display section 302depending on a detection result of a received signal strength obtainedby the received signal strength (electric field intensity) detectionsection 114. The display processing section 118 performs displayprocessing in a manner that the ripple UI moves with a position at whichthe mobile device 200 is held over as the center. Thus, the ripple thatspreads outward with the mobile device 200 as the center is displayed onthe display section 302. In this case, the display processing section118 provides the user with an easy-to-understand UI by changing thebehavior of the wave (UI) depending on a device type, a received signalstrength, a data type, data capacity, and the like, which are receivedby the received data processing section 116.

For example, as the signal strength is higher, the wave is displayedsuch that an amplitude or a frequency of the wave becomes larger.Accordingly, the user can visually determine whether or not the receivedsignal strength is high only by looking at the wave displayed on thedisplay section 302. Further, by setting in advance a shape, a color, anamplitude, a frequency, and the like of the wave associated with adevice type or a data type, the user can visually recognize those piecesof information only by looking at the wave displayed on the displaysection 302.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the informationprocessing apparatus 300. First, in Step S10, the electrode plate(antenna) 204, 304 and the touch panel 170 are initialized. In Step S12that follows, it is detected whether the mobile device 200 is held overthe information processing apparatus 300, and in the case where themobile device 200 is held over the information processing apparatus 300,the procedure proceeds to Step S14. On the other hand, in the case wherethe mobile device 200 is not held over the information processingapparatus 300, the procedure waits at Step S12.

In Step S14, the position of the mobile device 200 and the receivedsignal strength are specified. In Step S16 that follows, various typesof information such as the data type and capacity are acquired by asearch or a reference to an index after the establishment of thewireless connection. Next, in Step S18, UI processing is performed, andthe processing of displaying on the display section 302 the wave in avarying manner depending on the received signal strength is performed,for example.

In Step S18, there is performed, as an example, processing of changingsound and color of the wave depending on the type of the mobile device200. Further, there is performed processing of changing the amplitudeand the frequency of the ripple depending on the received signalstrength. Still further, there is performed processing of changing thesound and color of the wave depending on the data type. In addition,there is performed processing of changing the sound, color, andfrequency of the wave depending on the data capacity. Here, the datacapacity may be data amount of content such as a photograph and a movingimage that are held by the mobile device 200. Note that the processingprocedure in each embodiment which will be described below is performedin the same manner as in FIG. 7.

Further, the UI to be displayed on the display section 302 is notnecessarily limited to the ripple, and may be, for example, a UI whichreads out a name of a connected device using specific voice depending onthe type of the device, for example. In this case, there may be used avoice which is used in a commercial for advertising the connected mobiledevice 200.

Further, as for the received signal strength, there can be performeddisplay processing in a manner that, when the mobile device 200 comescloser to a target displayed on the display section 302 of theinformation processing apparatus 300, the target is enlarged inaccordance with the increase of the received signal strength. Thesimilar processing can be also expressed with voice, and there can beperformed processing in a manner that the volume of the voice is turnedup as the mobile device 200 comes nearer.

FIG. 8A is a schematic view showing an example of displaying, when themobile device 200 is put down, pieces of content in a manner to bescattered around as if they pop out. As shown in FIG. 8A, types of datacan be displayed in a manner that, after the mobile device 200 is heldover, icons corresponding to the types of data, respectively, pop outfrom the center of the mobile device 200. In this case, there areperformed the following display processing, for example: in the case ofmusic content, a musical note pops out; and in the case of photographcontent, a photograph is pops out. In this case, it can be made visuallymore effective by displaying the content in 3D.

FIG. 8B is a schematic view showing a state where there is displayed onthe display section a UI falling on sand and getting buried in the sandaround the mobile device 200. As shown in FIG. 8B, the display section302 is likened to a golf bunker, and pieces of content are displayed ina manner to be scattered around, just like that balls fall on the bunkerand the sand splashes. As for the data capacity transfer, the displaysection 302 is likened to a golf bunker, and the pieces of contentscattered around the mobile device 200 are displayed in a manner to getsunk in the sand, just like that balls fall on the bunker and the ballssink in the sand. In addition, the display is performed such that howfar the content sinks changes depending on the amount of the data. Inthe same manner, the UI may be displayed with the display section 302being likened to a cushion. In this case, the UI may be displayed in amanner that, by changing the amount of bouncing depending on the dataamount of the content, the bouncing amount becomes larger as the dataamount becomes larger.

Next, there will be described the case where the mobile device 200 isheld on the side of the display section 302 (display) of the informationprocessing apparatus 300. This can be applied for the case where, asdescribed in FIG. 3, electrode plates 304 are provided along theperiphery of the display section 302.

As shown in FIG. 9, when the mobile device 200 comes closer to a sidesurface of the information processing apparatus 300, a wirelesscommunication connection is established between the mobile device 200and the electrode plates 304 provided along the periphery of theinformation processing apparatus 300. In this case, there is performedprocessing of displaying a semicircular ripple with a position at whichthe mobile device 200 is held as the center. Further, an iconcorresponding to the type of the mobile device 200 and the like can alsobe displayed at the center of the wave or at the vicinity thereof.Accordingly, the user can confirm whether the mobile device 200 that hasbeen held close to the information processing apparatus 300 is correctlyrecognized by the information processing apparatus 300. Processing otherthan the above processing can be performed in the same manner as theexample of FIG. 6, and the amplitude, the frequency, the color, and thelike of the ripple can be changed depending on the received signalstrength, the data type, the data capacity, and the like.

Next, a description will be given of a configuration of performingcontent display and menu display in the case where the mobile device 200is placed on the display section 302. FIG. 10 is a schematic viewshowing a state where, in the case where the mobile device 200 is placedon the display section 302 of the information processing apparatus 300,content or a menu transmitted from the mobile device 200 is displayed.As shown in FIG. 10, the mobile device 200 and the informationprocessing apparatus 300 communicate with each other, and the content orthe menu is displayed in the vicinity of the mobile device 200. In theexample shown in FIG. 10, there is shown a state where pieces of contentheld by the mobile device 200 are displayed on the circumference on thedisplay section 302 with the mobile device 200 as the center. With sucha display, the user can perform processing of opening the content or thelike by operating the icon of the content displayed on the displaysection 302. In this case, an output of the touch panel 170 istransmitted to the operation detection section 124, and then theprocessing of displaying the content opened by the display processingsection 118 is performed. Further, an output of the operation detectionsection 124 is transmitted to the processing execution section 122, andthen the processing of opening the content is executed.

For example, when the user operates a “camera” icon displayed on thedisplay section 302, the touch panel 170 of the information processingapparatus 300 detects the operation and displays photograph data ascontent. In this way, the photograph data held by the mobile device 200can be displayed on the display section 302.

Hereinafter, there will be described technology necessary for realizingthe UI shown in FIG. 10 and a method of realizing the UI. “Thespecification of the position of the mobile device 200”, “the detectionof being held over”, and “the establishment of the wireless connection”are performed in the same manner as the example of the ripple describedabove. In addition thereto, in the UI shown in FIG. 10, when identifyingthe mobile device 200, the information processing apparatus 300 acquiresinformation indicating the size of the mobile device 200 and alsoacquires information of specifying the direction of the mobile device200. Since the information of the size of the mobile device 200 isacquired, an icon can be displayed on the outer region of the mobiledevice 200. Further, the information of specifying the direction of themobile device 200 is acquired for orienting the direction of displayingthe icon toward the direction of the mobile device 200. In the case ofspecifying the direction of the mobile device 200, the shape of themobile device 200 is detected by the touch panel 170 of the informationprocessing apparatus 300, and the direction is specified based on theshape. Further, information on the direction of the mobile device 200which is obtained from the geomagnetic sensor 140 of the mobile device200 can also be transmitted to the information processing apparatus 300.

Note that the configuration above is applicable to the case of placingthe mobile device 200 on the display section 302 and to the case ofplacing the mobile device 200 on the side surface of the display section302, and the position to place the mobile device 200 is not limited.

As shown in FIG. 10, the menu screen of the information processingapparatus 300 displays icons indicating the functions of the mobiledevice 200 on the circumference of a concentric circle having the mobiledevice 200 as the center. In the case where the mobile device 200 isplaced on the side surface of the information processing apparatus 300,the icons are displayed on the circumference of a semicircle having themobile device 200 as the center.

The processing of the information processing apparatus 300 in theexample of FIG. 10 is the same as that of FIG. 7. In the example of FIG.10, in Step S16, there are acquired information of content, informationof a size of the mobile device 200, and information of a direction ofthe mobile device 200, in addition to the information such as data type.Then, in Step S18, the content display and the menu display areperformed taking into consideration the size and the direction of themobile device 200.

FIGS. 11 to 17 show variations of FIG. 10. FIG. 11 shows an example ofdisplaying, in the case where a connection with the mobile device 200 isestablished, content held by the mobile device 200 as an item of a crossmedia bar (XMB: registered trademark). In this case, when selecting oneof the icons arranged in the lateral direction, then icons of thecontent related to the selected icon are displayed in the verticaldirection. Accordingly, when a functional icon is selected, thecorresponding content can be caused to be displayed.

FIG. 12 shows an example of displaying information of content byseparating the information into left and right sides of the displaysection 302. Further, FIG. 13 shows an example of, when the connectionwith the mobile device 200 is established in a state where the icons ofthe content related to the information processing apparatus 300 aredisplayed on the display section 302, a functional icon which is notavailable among the functional icons grays out and a functional iconwhich is available among the functional icons is displayed brightlydepending on the function of the mobile device 200. Further, when themobile device 200 is held over, it may be set in the following manner: afunctional icon which is not available among the functional icons ishidden; and a functional icon which is available among the functionalicons is displayed. In this case, in the case of displaying a functionalicon, animation may be displayed. Further, a recommended functional iconmay be displayed in an appealing manner.

FIG. 14 is a schematic view showing a case where the mobile device 200is brought closer to the left side surface of the information processingapparatus 300. In the example shown in FIG. 14, an available icon ismoved in the vicinity of the mobile device 200. In this way, when themobile device 200 is held over, a functional icon which is availableamong the functional icons may be moved in a manner to be attracted tothe mobile device 200. In this case, a functional icon which isunavailable may gray out or may be hidden. In such a case, informationrelated to the size and direction of the mobile device 200 is acquired,and the icon is displayed such that the icon is not overlapped with themobile device 200. Further, by matching a moving direction of the iconwith a transfer direction of data, it may be set in such a manner that aflow of the data can be visually recognized. Still further, icons whichrelate with each other may be displayed in a manner that the icons mergeinto each other. In addition, as for an icon which moves in a wrongdirection, the icon can be moved in a correct direction by operation ofthe touch panel 170. With the spread of mobile devices 200, there areproduced mobile devices 200 having various types of content andapplications in present conditions. According to the present embodiment,it is possible to show the user in an easy-to-understand way what can bedone and what cannot be done by the mobile device 200 only by placingthe mobile device 200 on a large-sized display, and hence, theconvenience of users including the users who are unfamiliar with thehandling of the mobile device 200 can be enhanced.

FIG. 15 shows an example in which pieces of content of the mobile device200 move to four corners on the display section 302 depending on typesof content. In this way, the icons of content may be gathered indifferent places depending on the type of content. The received dataprocessing section 116 of the information processing apparatus 300acquires identification information of information received from themobile device 200, and display processing depending on the type ofcontent can be performed by the display processing section 118. Thus,many types of pieces of content can be classified in an orderly mannerand displayed. Further, it is also possible to allow the user to lookfor content of a function that the user wants by moving content byoperating the touch panel 170.

FIG. 16 shows a state where pieces of content are overflowed from themobile device 200 onto the display section 302 by holding the mobiledevice 200 over the information processing apparatus 300, and the piecesof content are felt with hands for looking for content. When theoperation of the touch panel 170 performed by the user is detected bythe operation detection section 124, the state in which the content ismoved in response to the operation can be displayed. In this way, theoperation of finding the desired content can be performed by randomlydisplaying pieces of content in an overlapping manner and moving thepieces of contents by hands.

In the display method shown in FIG. 16, there may be performed 3Ddisplay, and overlapped pieces of content may be operated by 3Doperation. In this case, the state of the pieces of content beingoverlapped with each other can be displayed more realistically.

According to the operation shown in FIG. 16, in the case where thecontent is “photograph”, for example, it becomes possible, in the statewhere as if photographs are scattered about on the display section 302,to find a desired photograph or align the photographs. Therefore, itbecomes possible to find the desired content from among randomly placedpieces of content by moving the pieces of content with hands by theoperation of the touch panel 170. In this case, it is also possible topreferentially display the content whose number of reproduction times ishigh or the content whose number of reproduction times is low.

FIG. 17 is a schematic view showing another operation of content. In theexample shown in FIG. 17, there are displayed a UI represented by anicon which is a picture of a compact disc (CD) or an audio tape and a UIwhich is a picture of a player. When the user operates the touch panel170 and places the icon of CD on top of the icon of the player, theselected CD is reproduced by the processing execution section 122.

As means for creating a playlist, there is a technique of arrangingpieces of content (CD and audio tape in the example of FIG. 17) in anorder of a list or attaching a number to each piece of content, therebyenabling to set data indicating the number from the top of the playlistfor each piece of content. Accordingly, even when compact discs (CDs)are randomly thrown into the player, the CDs can be reproduced in acorrect order. In general, since a PC that is larger in size is providedwith a good audio/video reproduction device, the content on the mobiledevice 200 can be watched and listened to by a better reproductiondevice while visually confirming and selecting the content on alarge-sized display (display section 302).

Next, as for the method of acquiring icon data, there can be exemplifieda method of preparing options in advance and a method of displayingicons of related functions obtained by searching a terminal, but themethod is not limited thereto.

As a practical application for transferring the processing of the mobiledevice 200 to the information processing apparatus 300, a state of themobile device 200 is acquired by the information processing apparatus300 and the rest is reproduced in the information processing apparatus300. When the mobile device 200 is held over the information processingapparatus 300, (the rest of) the content which has been reproduced inthe mobile device 200 is reproduced in the information processingapparatus 300. Further, an image and the like may be transmitted from ascreen under operation of another information processing apparatus 300.

Next, there will be described an example of moving content, a functionalicon, and the like on the information processing apparatus 300 which arealready displayed on the display section 302 when the mobile device 200is held over the information processing apparatus 300. In the exampleshown in FIG. 18, in the case where a window W of content is displayedon almost the whole surface of the display section 302, when the mobiledevice 200 is placed on the display section 302, the window W moves(reduces) in a manner to keep away from the mobile device 200. In thiscase, the window W is resized depending on the size of the mobile device200. Accordingly, the mobile device 200 and the window W are notoverlapped with each other, and the user can continuously visuallyrecognize the entire display of window W.

FIG. 19 is a schematic view showing an example in which an icon moves ina manner to keep away from the mobile device 200 when the mobile device200 is placed on the icon which is already being displayed. By movingthe icon displayed underneath the mobile device 200 to a position atwhich the icon can be easily seen, the mobile device 200 and the iconcan be avoided from being overlapped with each other. Then, with theoperation of the touch panel 170, it becomes possible to arrange relatedicons in an easy-to-use manner. In the examples shown in FIGS. 18 and19, after the connection establishment, the display processing section118 performs processing of moving a window or an icon to a positionwhich does not overlaps with the mobile device 200 by acquiring aposition, a size, and a direction of the mobile device 200. It isconvenient in that the user can easily place the mobile device 200 onthe display section 302 for displaying a menu or the like withoutworrying about the position of the window. As shown in FIG. 18, in thecase where the mobile device 200 is released from the display section302, the window W may be returned to the size before the mobile device200 is placed on the display section 302. In the same manner, as shownin FIG. 19, icons which overlap with the mobile device 200 are moved ordeleted, and after that, when the mobile device 200 is released from thedisplay section 302, the icons may be moved again or displayed again atthe original positions.

Further, when the mobile device 200 is rotated, the menu displayed onthe display section 302 is rotated in a manner to follow that direction.For example, in the case where there is a user other than the useroperating the mobile device 200, a menu that is directed toward the useroperating the mobile device 200 is directed to the other user byrotating the mobile device 200. Accordingly, the direction of thedisplay can be changed such that it is easily viewable for the otheruser. Since the mobile device 200 (physical target) can be directlytouched and, with the touched part as an origin, the menu on the displaycan be operated, it becomes possible to perform an intuitive operation.

Next, a description will be given of a case where the mobile device 200is brought closer to the back side surface of the information processingapparatus 300. In the case of the configuration shown in FIG. 2, sincethe electrode plates 304 are arranged on the whole region of the backside surface of the information processing apparatus 300, the connectioncan be established also in the case where the mobile device 200 isbrought closer to the back side surface of the information processingapparatus 300. In this case, as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21, a UI in aspiral shape is displayed on the display section 302 depending on aposition of the mobile device 200. On this occasion, by changing thedirection of the proceeding wave along the moving direction of data, theuser can visually and intuitively recognize the moving direction of thedata. The display on the display section 302 can be performed in thesame manner as in the example shown in FIG. 6, and since the mobiledevice 200 is not present on the display section 302, the UI in a spiralshape or the like with the position of the mobile device 200 as thecenter point can be displayed without taking into consideration the sizeof the mobile device 200.

In FIGS. 22 and 23, there is provided a UI which notifies the user of adirection of data movement by performing, in the case where the mobiledevice 200 is placed on the display section 302, a display in a mannerthat the display section 202 of the mobile device 200 works inconjunction with the display section 302 of the information processingapparatus 300. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 22, in the case where themobile device 200 transfers data to the information processing apparatus300, when the mobile device 200 is held over the information processingapparatus 300, the display section 202 displays a motion in a mannerthat content is sucked into the spiral, for example. Then, the displaysection 302 of the information processing apparatus 300 displays the UIin which the content sucked into the spiral in the mobile device 200 isoverflowed. In this case, when the transmission data processing section112 of the mobile device 200 transmits data, the display processingsection 118 of the mobile device 200 performs display processing in amanner that content is sucked into the spiral on the display section202. The reverse display processing is performed in the case where theinformation processing apparatus 300 transmits data to mobile device200, the state where the content is sucked into the spiral is displayedon the display section 302 of the information processing apparatus 300,and the state where the content is overflowed is displayed on thedisplay section 202. The transfer of the content is expressed on twodisplays of the information processing apparatus 300 and the mobiledevice 200, respectively, and hence, the user can be notified of thestatus of the content transfer in a more easy-to-understand way.

Here, although it is also possible to display menu content on a displayof a mobile device of the past, it is sometimes difficult to grasp alist of many pieces of menu content in the mobile device with anincreased capacity and to operate the menu content, because the mobiledevice which is reduced in size has a small display section. As shown inthe embodiment, the menu content of the mobile device 200 is temporarilydisplayed on the display section 302, which is larger than the displaysection of the mobile device, and the menu content is caused to beoperated by a user, and hence, convenience of a user can be enhanced toa large degree. Further, the contents of the mobile device 200 held byan individual person may be shown to another person through alarge-sized display, and hence, the communication related to thecontents of the mobile device 200 can be facilitated. In addition, whenusing the mobile device 200 whose display section is not sufficientlylarge (or which does not have a display section), it becomes possible toperform operation and content management.

An advantage of placing the mobile device 200 on the display section 302(on the display) is that the convenience of the user in the deviceoperation can be enhanced owing to the display of the menu and the likeon the basis of the extremely intuitive operation of “putting down (ormoving) the mobile device 200”. Further, an advantage of placing themobile device 200 on the side part of the display section 302 (displayside) is that a menu and the like can be displayed without hiding thelarge-sized display with the mobile device 200 itself. Still further, anadvantage of handling content of two mobile devices 200 via theinformation processing apparatus 300 is that a status of contentmovement/sharing can be visually shown to the user in aneasy-to-understand way by displaying, on the information processingapparatus 300 having the large-sized display, synchronization betweenthe two mobile devices 200 and progress, degree, current status, and thelike of the content movement.

2. Second Embodiment

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.The second embodiment relates to content movement between the mobiledevice 200 and the information processing apparatus 300. As the contentmovement, there are a case of moving content from the mobile device 200to the information processing apparatus 300, and a case of movingcontent from the information processing apparatus 300 to the mobiledevice 200.

In the case of moving content from the mobile device 200 to theinformation processing apparatus 300, when the mobile device 200 isplaced on the display section 302 of the information processingapparatus 300, content of the mobile device 200 moves to the informationprocessing apparatus 300. In this case, when the content is a movingimage and is being reproduced on the display section 202 of the mobiledevice 200, the content of the moving image which has been moved to theinformation processing apparatus 300 is reproduced continuously from thetiming at which the content is moved onto the display section 302.

Further, on the display section 302, there can be provided multipleplaces for placing the mobile device 200, and different types ofoperation/data transfer can be performed depending on the place. In thiscase, based on a detection result of a position of the mobile device 200performed by the position detection section 120 of the informationprocessing apparatus 300, different types of operation/data transfer areperformed. In the case where multiple pieces of content move to theinformation processing apparatus 300 and it is difficult to display themultiple pieces of content on the whole region of the display section302, the pieces of contents are displayed in a manner that they arepiled up.

Further, in the case of moving content from the information processingapparatus 300 to the mobile device 200, the mobile device 200 is heldover the information processing apparatus 300, thereby copying thecontent of the information processing apparatus 300 into the mobiledevice 200. In this case, the information processing apparatus 300displays content to be transmitted on the display section 302, and whenthe mobile device 200 is held thereover, the content is set to betransmitted to the mobile device 200. Further, there may be provided oneor multiple places for accumulating pieces of content to be transmittedwithin the display section 302, and the pieces of content may be suckedtogether by holding the mobile device 200 over the place. The processingcan be realized by: detecting the position of the mobile device 200 bythe position detection section 120 of the information processingapparatus 300; and, in the case where it is recognized that the positionof the content displayed on the display section 302 by the displayprocessing section 118 corresponds to the position of the mobile device200, sucking the content by the mobile device 200.

Further, multiple mobile devices 200 are connected to the informationprocessing apparatus 300, and content is visually moved via theinformation processing apparatus 300. Each mobile device 200 is placedon the display section 302 or placed on a side surface of theinformation processing apparatus 300. For example, multiple mobiledevices 200 are placed on the right side surface and the left sidesurface of the information processing apparatus 300, and the content ismoved from one mobile device 200 to another mobile device 200 via theinformation processing apparatus 300. In this way, contentviewing/movement by multiple users via the information processingapparatus 300 can be performed.

Next, there will be described data transfer with a flick operation ofthe mobile device 200. In the example described above, although the datatransfer is automatically performed in the state of holding the mobiledevice 200 over the information processing apparatus 300 (after theestablishment of connection), in this example, as shown in FIG. 24, whenflicking the content being displayed in the mobile device 200 in thestate where the mobile device 200 is held over the informationprocessing apparatus 300, the data is transferred to the informationprocessing apparatus 300. The flick operation may be performed byflicking the mobile device 200 itself, or by performing flick operationto the touch panel 170 on the display section 202 of the mobile device200. In the same manner, when the content being displayed on the displaysection 302 of the information processing apparatus 300 is flickedtoward the mobile device 200 by operation of the touch panel 170 on thedisplay section 302, the data is transferred to the mobile device 200.The flick operation on the touch panel 170 can be detected at theoperation detection section 124 based on the output of the touch panel170. Further, in the case of performing flick operation of the mobiledevice 200 itself, the operation can be detected based on the output ofthe acceleration sensor 150 included in the mobile device 200. In thecase where the flick operation is detected, the transmission dataprocessing section transmits data such as content to a communicationpartner device.

Further, in FIG. 24, in addition to the case of flicking the mobiledevice 200 itself on the display section 302, when content on thedisplay section 202 of the mobile device 200 is touched by a user andmoved to a predetermined direction (for example, data transfer directionshown in FIG. 24), the content may be displayed in a manner that thecontent is moved on the display section 302 in that direction in thesame manner as in the case of flicking the mobile device 200 itself. Inthis case, selection of content on the mobile device 200 by user'sfinger and information of flicking direction are detected by the touchpanel of the mobile device 200, and by notifying the informationprocessing apparatus 300 of the selection and the information, thecontent movement can be performed in the same manner as in FIG. 24.Accordingly, the content can be moved in any direction on a large-sizeddisplay section 302 and can be displayed on the desktop while confirmingthe substance of the content to be transferred on the display section202 of the mobile device 200, and hence, it becomes possible tointuitively move the content with a sense that the content is“scattered” by the finger.

Further, when content being reproduced on the display section 202 of themobile device 200, which is being held over the information processingapparatus 300, is flicked on the display of the information processingapparatus 300, content can be transferred such that the reproductiondisplay is switched to the reproduction display of the display section302 of the information processing apparatus 300. In the same manner,when content being reproduced on the display section 302 of theinformation processing apparatus 300 is flicked toward the mobile device200 by operation of the touch panel 170 on the display section 302, thecontent being reproduced is transferred to the mobile device 200, andthe reproduction display can be switched to the reproduction display onthe display section 202 of the mobile device 200.

FIG. 25 is a schematic view showing an example of moving content withbetween-devices-flicking by interposing the information processingapparatus 300 between two mobile devices 200. As shown in FIG. 25, amobile device (A) 200 and a mobile device (B) 200 are placed on the leftand right sides of the information processing apparatus 300,respectively, and the mobile device (A) 200 and the mobile device (B)200 are each connected to the information processing apparatus 300. Inthis case, pieces of content of the mobile device (A) 200 at the leftside are displayed in a semicircular shape on the display section 302.By operating the touch panel 170 of the display section 302, the usercan move the content to the mobile device (B) 200. In this case, when adistance between the content and the mobile device (B) 200 comes closeto a predetermined value or less by the operation of the touch panel170, for example, data is transmitted to the mobile device (B) 200 bythe transmission data processing section 112. In this case, content istransferred from the mobile device (A) 200 to the information processingapparatus 300, and the content is temporarily stored in the dataaccumulation section 130 of the information processing apparatus 300.After that, under a predetermined condition, the content is transferredby the transmission data processing section 112 of the informationprocessing apparatus 300 to the mobile device (B) 200. In this way, inthe present embodiment, the content is not directly moved from themobile device (A) 200 to the mobile device (B) 200, and the content istemporarily stored in the information processing apparatus 300.

Further, in the state shown in FIG. 25, content of the two mobiledevices 200 can be synchronized. In this case, the pieces of content ofeach of the two mobile devices 200 are displayed in a semicircular shapeas those of the mobile device (A) 200 shown in FIG. 25, andsynchronization operation may be performed by flicking content into bothdirections with the operation of the touch panel 170. Further, theprogress of the synchronization processing may be displayed by thenumber of remaining pieces of data. Also, the UI may be displayed in amanner that content whose synchronization has been finished is hidden.By performing such synchronization processing, information held by onemobile device 200 may be conformed to the other mobile device 200.

FIG. 26 is a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization triggered by a gesture. As shown in FIG. 26, in the casewhere, by the touch panel operation on the display section 302, thetouch panel is operated in the right direction from the mobile device(A) 200 at the left side, information of the mobile device (A) 200 atthe left side is synchronized with the mobile device (B) 200 at theright side. Further, in the case where the touch panel is operated inthe left direction from the mobile device (B) 200 at the right side,information of the mobile device (B) 200 at the right side issynchronized with the mobile device (A) 200 at the left side.

FIG. 27 is a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization of information of a database of the informationprocessing apparatus 300 with the mobile device (A) 200 and the mobiledevice (B) 200. In the example shown in FIG. 27, there is shown a statewhere recommended information is shown on the display section 302 of theinformation processing apparatus 300, and the information issynchronized with the mobile device (A) 200 and the mobile device (B)200. In this way, both the mobile device (A) 200 and the mobile device(B) 200 can acquire information of the recommended database. In thiscase, when the connection with the mobile device 200 is established inthe state where the recommended information of the database is displayedon the display section 302 by the display processing section 118, thedisplayed information of the database is transmitted to the mobiledevice 200. Note that the recommended information can be stored in thedata accumulation section 130.

FIG. 28 shows a state where the information processing apparatus 300 andan external server are connected to each other via a communication linesuch as the Internet, and information of a recommended database isduplicated into latest information using information of the server. Byupdating the information of the recommended database to the latestinformation all of the time, the convenience at the time of backup,moving house, or the like can be enhanced.

FIG. 29 is a schematic view showing a state of performing copying whileperforming transcoding. For example, when mutually moving data amongportable music players, mobile phones, and the like, for example, theinformation processing apparatus 300 converts (transcodes) a format andperforms copying. In the example shown in FIG. 24, the informationprocessing apparatus 300 transcodes from AAC (Advanced Audio Coding)format to MP3 format. Accordingly, the processing with a large load thatis difficult to be handled by the mobile device 200 can be executed bythe information processing apparatus 300 instead. The format that eachmobile device 200 is compatible with is acquired from information thatspecifies the mobile device 200.

FIG. 30 is a schematic view showing a state of exchanging addressesbetween two mobile devices, the mobile device (A) 200 and the mobiledevice (B) 200, in the case where the mobile device 200 holds an e-mailaddress or the like. In this case, the mobile device (A) 200 and themobile device (B) 200 are connected to each other via the informationprocessing apparatus 300, and when there is information that isregistered in the address book of one of the two mobile devices 200 butis not registered in the address book of the other mobile device 200,the mobile device 200 holding the information transmits the address tothe mobile device 200 that is not holding the information and thusperforming address exchange. In the example shown in FIG. 30, addressesheld by the two mobile devices 200 are displayed on the display section302, and the address held by both mobile devices 200 is only an addressA. Accordingly, the addresses that are not common between the mobiledevices 200 are transferred to the other mobile device 200, and arecopied in the other mobile device 200. In this way, the addressinformation between the two mobile devices 200 can be made common. Inthis case, the two mobile devices 200 each compare the addressinformation received by the received data processing section 116 withits own address information, and transmit an address that is not held bythe communication partner device from the transmission data processingsection 112. Note that the address information can be stored in the dataaccumulation section 130.

Further, at the time of the address exchange, there can be displayed aUI for selecting an address. For example, as shown in FIG. 31, multipleaddresses may be enclosed and selected by the operation of the touchpanel 170, and the enclosed addresses may be exchanged with each other.In the example shown in FIG. 31, addresses B and C held by the mobiledevice (A) 200 are enclosed by the operation of the touch panel 170 andtransmitted to the mobile device (B) 200. Further, addresses D and Eheld by the mobile device (B) 200 are enclosed by the operation of thetouch panel 170 and transmitted to the mobile device (A) 200.

Further, there may be considered a technique of introducing a socialnetworking service to each other, for example, based on the addressinformation that is held by both the mobile devices 200. In this case,address information may be exchanged between the mobile devices 200, anda correlation diagram between the mobile devices 200 may be output.Those events may be caused to occur in the case where the mobile device(A) 200 and the mobile device (B) 200 hold the same information (addressA in the example shown in FIG. 30).

Although the examples shown above mainly represent the cases of placingthe mobile device 200 on the side surface of the information processingapparatus 300, the same processing can be performed also in the case ofplacing the mobile device 200 on the display section 302. In the casewhere the mobile device 200 is placed on the display section 302,depending on a distance between the two mobile devices 200 and when thedistance between the mobile devices 200 is shorter than a predeterminedvalue, the data exchange is performed in the state nearer tosynchronization. Further, when the two mobile devices 200 are moved awayfrom each other, there can be performed processing of exchanging onlydata with high correlation with each other, for example.

In this case, after placing the mobile devices 200 on the displaysection 302, synchronization of data starts when the two mobile devices200 are brought closer to each other. The fact that the synchronizationof data has started is displayed with a UI (for example, a ripple UI).The mobile devices 200 may each have a territory in the surroundingthereof, and when the territories overlap with each other, an actioncorresponding thereto (synchronization) may begin.

FIGS. 32 to 34 are each a schematic view showing a state of performingsynchronization depending on a distance when the mobile devices 200 areplaced on the display section 302. As shown in FIG. 32, in the casewhere the distance between the two mobile devices 200 is more than apredetermined value, only data with high degree of correlation istransferred to each other, and partial synchronization is performed.Further, as shown in FIG. 33, in the case where the distance between thetwo mobile devices 200 is equal to or less than the predetermined value,all the pieces of information of the both mobile devices 200 are copiedand the synchronization is performed completely. In this case, as shownin FIG. 34, all pieces of data are displayed around the two mobiledevices 200, and the display of data whose synchronization has beencompleted is sequentially hidden. Accordingly, the user can determinethe progress of data copying from the display state.

FIG. 35 is a schematic view showing a state of playing hockey with adisplay section 302 being interposed therebetween, as applicationsynchronization. Here, information held by one mobile device 200 islikened to a hockey puck and the hockey puck is displayed on the displaysection 302. When the puck sent from one mobile device 200 is caught bythe other mobile device 200, the synchronization of the information isperformed. Here, in the case where the position on the left and rightedges of the display section 302 at which the puck hits and the positionof the mobile device 200 correspond to each other, the puck is caught bythe mobile device 200. Alternatively, in the case where the puck sentfrom one mobile device 200 is not caught by the other mobile device 200,the synchronization of the information may be performed.

3. Third Embodiment

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. Thethird embodiment relates to processing of synchronizing video betweenthe mobile device 200 and the information processing apparatus 300, andperforming penetration, enlargement, complement, and the like. In thecase of placing the mobile device 200 on the display section 302, bycausing a display on the display section 302 to be penetrated on thedisplay section 202 of the mobile device 200, video on the displaysection 302, which is hidden under the mobile device 200, can beconfirmed, and operation via the mobile device 200 becomes possible.Further, by enlarging a display on the display section 302 anddisplaying the enlarged display on the display section 204, desiredcontent can be enlarged and viewed.

FIG. 36 shows a state where, when content “A” is displayed on thedisplay section 302 and the mobile device 200 is placed such that themobile device 200 covers the content “A”, the content “A” is displayedon the display section 202 of the mobile device 200 as if the content“A” penetrates the mobile device 200.

In this way, in the example of penetration, when the mobile device 200is placed on the display section 302 (large-sized display), the displayon the display section 302 is penetrated and displayed on the displaysection 202. In this case, a UI may be changed depending on whethercontent can be transferred from the information processing apparatus 300to the mobile device 200. Further, as a function realized in combinationwith the penetration, there may be displayed functions (icon and menu)that is compatible with a combination with the mobile device 200 on thedisplay section 202 of the mobile device 200 when the mobile device 200is held over the display section 202. In the processing of the thirdembodiment, the position detection section 120 detects a position of themobile device 200 on the display section 302 based on a received signalstrength detected by the received signal strength (electric fieldintensity) detection section 114. The position of the mobile device 200is compared with a position of the content, the icon, or the like on thedisplay section 302, which is displayed by the display processingsection 118, and in the case where the position of the mobile device 200and the position of the icon or the like on the display section 302correspond to each other, information of the icon or the like is sent tothe mobile device 200 from the transmission data processing section 112.Thus, the mobile device 200 can display the information of the icon orthe like on the display section 202.

Further, as shown in FIG. 36, on the display section 202 of the mobiledevice 200 which is held over the display section 302, there aredisplayed information of the display section 302 at the position justunder the mobile device 200 and a function (menu) corresponding thereto.In this case, the transmission data processing section 112 of theinformation processing apparatus 300 transmits, to the mobile device200, the information of the content, the icon, and the like whosedisplay position on the display section 302 corresponds to the positionof the mobile device 200, and also the information of the function(menu) related thereto. Accordingly, in the mobile device 200, there canbe displayed on the display section 202, together with the informationof the content, the icon, or the like which is hidden behind the mobiledevice 200, also the related information. In the case where the functionof the mobile device 200 does not support the information, it is setsuch that a menu is not displayed when the mobile device 200 is heldover the display section 302, or it may be set such that the menu isgrayed out.

Further, when the mobile device 200 is held over an icon or the like onthe display section 302, there may be displayed a function that can beused on the mobile device 200 (function that can be realized incombination of the mobile device 200 and the information processingapparatus 300).

Further, content may be displayed on the mobile device 200 in advance,and when the mobile device 200 is held over the information processingapparatus 300 and the content is caused to move to the informationprocessing apparatus 300, there may be used a UI that exhibits the statein a way that the display section 202 of the mobile device 200 is copiedto the display section 302 of the information processing apparatus 300.Accordingly, the user can visually recognize that the content has beencopied (moved) from the mobile device 200 to the information processingapparatus 300.

FIG. 37 is a schematic view showing a state where data is moved from themobile device 200 to the information processing apparatus 300. As shownin the top diagram of FIG. 37, content B is displayed on the displaysection 202 of the mobile device 200 before the mobile device 200 isheld over the information processing apparatus 300. The middle diagramof FIG. 37 shows a state where the mobile device 200 on which thecontent B is displayed is held over the display section 302. When themobile device 200 is held over the display section 302, information ofthe content B is transferred to the information processing apparatus300. The bottom diagram of FIG. 37 shows a state where the mobile device200 is moved away from the display section 302 starting from the stateshown in the middle diagram of FIG. 37. When the mobile device 200 ismoved away from the display section 302, the information of the contentB which has been transferred is displayed on the display section 302.Accordingly, the user can visually recognize that the content B istransferred from the mobile device 200 to the information processingapparatus 300.

Next, there will be described an example of enlarging and displaying anicon or the like, which is displayed on the display section 302, on thedisplay section 202 of the mobile device 200. FIG. 38 shows an exampleof displaying, when the mobile device 200 is held over a folder icondisplayed on the display section 302, a content of the folder on thedisplay section 202 of the mobile device 200. In this case, it can beset in a manner that the content of the folder can be seen only by aspecific device that is held over the folder icon, which can be used forsecurity purposes.

Further, as a practical application of FIG. 38, the mobile device 200can be used as an electronic seal (approval). FIG. 39 is a schematicview showing a state of affixing an electronic seal using the mobiledevice 200 to a document displayed on the display section 302. As shownin the top diagram of FIG. 39, a document is displayed on the displaysection 302 and an electronic seal is displayed on the display section202 of the mobile device 200. The mobile device 200 is authorized toaffix the electronic seal. Then, as shown in the bottom diagram of FIG.39, when the mobile device 200 is held over the display section 302,there is displayed on the display section 202 an affixing position ofthe document, which is displayed on the display section 302, in apenetrating manner. When predetermined operation is performed in thisstate, the electronic seal of the mobile device 200 is affixed to thedocument of the display section 302, accordingly, the seal is affixed tothe document on the display section 302. The seal can be more easilyaffixed to the document by enlarging the display of the document on thedisplay section 202 of the mobile device 200 to the size larger thanthat on the display section 302.

Next, there will be described a case where a map displayed on thedisplay section 302 is displayed in an enlarged manner on the displaysection 202 of the mobile device 200. In FIG. 40, there is displayed amap of Japan on the display section 302, and FIG. 40 shows an example ofperforming enlarged display of the Kanto area on the display section 202by holding the mobile device 200 over the display section 302. With thearea subjected to the enlarged display, there may also be displayedinformation of the area (restaurant information, transportationinformation such as railway and road, weather information of the area,and the like). In this case, information of the area is added beforehandto the map information displayed on the information processing apparatus300, and by acquiring the information by the mobile device 200, theinformation is displayed on the display section 202.

Further, Sekai Camera-like information complement can be also performedby displaying, on the display section 202, the area other than theterritory displayed on the display section 302. For example, the mobiledevice 200 is placed outside the display section 302, and a map of thearea other than the display territory is set to be displayed on thedisplay section 202 as an expanded screen.

Further, in addition to the map, there can be exemplified the followingfunction: when the mobile device 200 is held over a photograph (groupphotograph or the like), a person in the photograph is enlarged anddisplayed on the display section 202; and persons registered in theaddress book or the like of the mobile device 200 held over thephotograph are searched and a result thereof is displayed. In this case,personal information is added beforehand to the photograph displayed onthe information processing apparatus 300, and the search is performed bycomparing the information with information in the address book.

4. Fourth Embodiment

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. Inthe fourth embodiment, in the case where the mobile device 200 is heldover the information processing apparatus 300, the mobile device 200 isguided to a position with good communication status. For example, a UIindicating the position at which the antenna 304 locates is displayed onthe display section 302 only when using wireless communication. Further,in the case where the mobile device 200 is placed on the display section302, and in the case where the position of the mobile device 200 isdeviated from the position of the antenna 304, there is displayed a UIwhich guides the mobile device 200 to an appropriate antenna position.In addition, a UI for guidance is displayed on the display section 202of the mobile device 200.

FIG. 41 is a schematic view showing a state where, when the mobiledevice 200 is placed on the display section 302, a UI for guidance isdisplayed on the display section 202 and the display section 302. Asshown in FIG. 41, an arrow indicating an appropriate direction isdisplayed on the display section 202 of the mobile device 200, and bymoving the mobile device 200 in the direction, the mobile device 200 canbe guided to the position of the antenna 304. In the example shown inFIG. 41, an arrow at the top left of the display section 202 isdisplayed brighter than the other arrows (or displayed in a flashingmanner), and the mobile device 200 is guided in that direction. In thecase where the mobile device 200 is positioned on the antenna 304, andwhen the communication state becomes the best state, the fact thereof isdisplayed. Further, as shown in FIG. 41, there may be displayed on thedisplay section 302 a cross indicating a “target” for the guidance tothe position of the antenna. In his case, the position detection section120 of the mobile device 200 or the information processing apparatus 300detects a current position of the mobile device 200 and a position withthe best received signal strength based on a received signal strengthdetected by the received signal strength (electric field intensity)detection section 114. The display processing section 118 performsdisplay processing of guiding the mobile device 200 in the directionwhose received signal strength becomes the best.

Further, as another method, there may be used a guidance method whichcauses the mobile device 200, which is held over the display section302, to generate sound and vibration. In this case, since antennasensitivity (distribution) is different between devices, the guidance isperformed while correcting the antenna sensitivity. The audio/vibrationoutput section 126 shown in FIG. 5 outputs audio or vibration for theguidance in the direction whose received signal strength becomes thebest. As an example, in the case of outputting audio, audio indicating adirection whose received signal strength becomes the best is output, andaudio indicating a position at which the received signal strengthbecomes the best is output at the position. Further, in the case ofoutputting vibration, vibration indicating a direction whose receivedsignal strength becomes the best is output, and vibration is stopped ata position at which the received signal strength becomes the best.

5. Fifth Embodiment

Next, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described. Thefifth embodiment relates to an electronic pen 400 that communicates withthe information processing apparatus 300. The electronic pen 400includes a recording section (storage device) 402 for recording data anda wireless communication section 404. The wireless communication section404 is configured in the same manner as the configuration described inFIG. 4. The electronic pen 400 performs various content movementoperations by gestures of the pen, for example, sucking and recordingdisplayed folders and the like in a group which are enclosed byoperation of the pen.

FIG. 42 is a schematic view showing a configuration of the electronicpen 400. The distal end of the electronic pen 400 configures a normalstylus with a pointed end. Further, there is provided an antenna 406 forwireless communication at the posterior end.

FIGS. 43 and 44 are each a schematic view showing a state of using theelectronic pen 400. First, suction (accumulation) of data using theelectronic pen 400 will be described. The suction of data is performedin the following three steps. First, as shown in FIG. 43, there isperformed drawing using the distal end of the electronic pen 400 in amanner to enclose content on the display section 302. By doing so, atouch sensor 170 detects the drawing, and a line that follows a locus ofa pen tip is drawn on the display section 302. In this case, one ormultiple pieces of content may be enclosed.

Next, by holding the electronic pen 400 upside-down, and direct theantenna 406 at the posterior end of the electronic pen 400 toward thedisplay section 302. Then, the posterior end of the electronic pen 400is held over the display section 302. Accordingly, the informationprocessing apparatus 300 and the electronic pen 400 are connected toeach other via wireless communication, and the data of the enclosedcontent is transferred from the information processing apparatus 300 tothe electronic pen 400. Since the information processing apparatus 300recognizes the locus of the pen tip, when the connection to theelectronic pen 400 is established, the information processing apparatus300 transmits data of the content contained in this area to theelectronic pen 400. The data of the content transferred to theelectronic pen 400 is held by the recording section 402.

Next, discharge (transmission) of data using the electronic pen 400 willbe described. The discharge of data is performed in one step. In a statewhere data is held by the recording section 402, when the posterior endof the electronic pen 400 is held toward the display section 302 asshown in FIG. 44, the electronic pen 400 is connected to the informationprocessing apparatus 300 via wireless communication, and the data heldby the recording section 402 is transferred to the informationprocessing apparatus 300. Thus, the data held by the recording section402 is copied onto a desktop of the display section 302.

Note that, as for a position at which the electronic pen 400 is heldover, in the case where the electrode plates 304 are provided along theperiphery of the information processing apparatus 300 as described inFIG. 3, the electronic pen 400 is to be held over in the vicinity of theantenna 304. Further, in the case where the electrode plates 304 areprovided on the whole region of the display section 302 as shown in FIG.2, the electronic pen 400 is to be held over the display section 302.

Further, the electronic pen 400 may perform: suction of data when theelectronic pen 400 is held over a predetermined selection area providedon the display section 302; function selection by clicking an icon; anddischarge of data when being held over an area other than the selectionarea.

Note that the electronic pen 400 may have the functions of the mobiledevice 200 described in the first to fourth embodiments. In this case,the electronic pen 400 does not have a display but can display a menu orthe like. Since the electronic pen 400 has no display, the electronicpen 400 reduces its weight and is suitable for carrying around. The usercan be provided with convenience and pleasure that content held by theelectronic pen 400 can be confirmed in each case on the display section302 (large-sized display) of the information processing apparatus 300.

It should be understood by those skilled in the art that variousmodifications, combinations, sub-combinations and alterations may occurdepending on design requirements and other factors insofar as they arewithin the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.

The present application contains subject matter related to thatdisclosed in Japanese Priority Patent Application JP 2010-123319 filedin the Japan Patent Office on May 28, 2010, the entire content of whichis hereby incorporated by reference.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus comprising:circuitry configured to acquire information obtained by short-rangeone-to-one communication with a communication partner device, andexecute processing of displaying the information based on a content ofthe information, the circuitry being configured to perform processing ofdisplaying the information in a circular fashion surrounding thecommunication partner device, the communication partner device being ata center of the displayed information; and a display device configuredto display the information.
 2. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the information includes at least one ofinformation related to a type of data held by the communication partnerdevice, identification information for identifying the communicationpartner device, and information related to a communication status whencommunicating with the communication partner device.
 3. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communicationpartner device is placed, in a state of a connection of communicationbeing established, in a territory within the display device or at alateral side of the display device.
 4. The information processingapparatus according to claim 3, wherein the circuitry is configured toperform display processing in a manner that data appears to pop-out ofthe communication partner device in a vicinity of the communicationpartner device with the communication partner device being at the centerof the data.
 5. The information processing apparatus according to claim1, wherein the circuitry is configured to perform display processing ina manner that a ripple propagates on the display device depending on thecontent of the information.
 6. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 5, wherein the circuitry is configured to performprocessing in a manner that speed, frequency, and amplitude of theripple propagation differ depending on the content of the information.7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, whereinthe circuitry is configured to perform processing of determining anddisplaying a display position within the display device depending on thecontent of the information.
 8. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to performdisplay processing in a manner that a display state in a case of theinformation being available differs from a display state in a case ofthe information being unavailable.
 9. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured toperform display processing in a manner that information alreadydisplayed on the display device is kept away from the information to benewly displayed.
 10. The information processing apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to perform displayprocessing that works in conjunction with a display of a display deviceincluded in the communication partner device.
 11. An informationprocessing system comprising: a first device which communicates with asecond device by short-range one-to-one communication; and the seconddevice which includes circuitry configured to acquire informationobtained by short-range one-to-one communication with the first device,and execute processing of displaying the information based on a contentof the information, the circuitry being configured to perform processingof displaying the information in a circular fashion surrounding thefirst device, the first device being at a center of the displayedinformation, and a display device configured to display the information.12. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including computerexecutable instructions for causing a computer to function as aninformation processing apparatus, the computer executable instructionscausing the computer to perform a method comprising: acquiringinformation obtained by short-range one-to-one communication with acommunication partner device; displaying the information based on acontent of the information, the displaying displaying the information ina circular fashion surrounding the communication partner device, thecommunication partner device being at a center of the displayedinformation.